LOVE IS AT THE HEART

I just finished writing a book on AGAPE, The Infinite, Ultimate Love of God (Not yet released) So I was especially attracted to Mary Harwell Sayler's Prayer-a-Phrase of 1 Corinthians 13, The Love Chapter, applying it to the writing life in her book, Christian Writer's Guide.

God's love in us is at the heart of preaching, bearing witness for Christ, teaching, and powerful praying. And yes it must be at the heart of Christian writing. I am convinced this will bless you as it has me.

“Though I speak with the most angelic voice heard in the hearts of men….

Though I resound as a clear bell calling all readers to ring with praise….

Though I prophesy with power, decipher mysteries, acquire insight, and utter wisdom well….

Though I have faith to move mountains of people with perceptive words and cast rejection into deep depths of the sea….

Though I write all I have been given and hand over my body of work without reimbursement or acknowledgment….

Though I can boast of publication and best-sells….

Without love for God and readers, my work is nothing.

The loving writer-poet must be patient, kind – not proud.

The loving writer-poet must not insist “My work, my way!” nor be scripted with resentment, but rejoice, rejoice in giving voice to truth.

The loving writer-poet bears all disappointments, believes all timing comes from God, and has hope without end to endure.

The loving writer-poet knows we know in part, but every part of every reader needs The Loving Word of God. This love story, theme, or purpose never ends.”

© 2000, Mary Harwell Sayler, poem previously published in Cross & Quill, publication of the former Christian Writers’ Fellowship International (CWFI)

I recommend Mary Harwell Sayler's blog that is filled with such delights.

https://marysayler.blogspot.com/?m=1/




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THE CHRISTIAN WRITER'S GUIDE

In an earlier blog I asked if there were any books written on Christian writing. Several of you suggested books dealing specifically with Christian writing. One of the books suggested to me was The Christian Writer's Guide, by Mary Harwell Sayler. What a wonderful surprise this book turned out to be! I, of course, had asked the question thinking somewhat academically about the differences in writing in the relationship and calling of Christ. But this book is satisfying longings I did not know I had.
One delightful concept she introduces “Prayer-a-Phrasing Scripture.” Although this was a clever way of presenting praying Scripture passages. The concept is not completely new to many of us. But two of her applications to writing struck me enough to be printed and put up on my desk.
She begins the first chapter with these words.
“Some writing projects might not even mention God’s name, but every project, including this one, needs to begin with prayer, asking God to guide, inspire, and be with us.”
Then she adapts The Lord's Prayer to the needs of writers.
Our Father Who Is in Heaven, let Your Name be holy in us.
Let Your Kingdom Come.
Let Your Will be done in our earthly writings as though written in Heaven.
Give us this day, our daily bread to nourish us and our readers and strengthen the whole Body of Christ.
Forgive us for trespassing with old assumptions or biased words that intrude, and help us to forgive those who speak ill of You.
Lead us not into the temptation of accepting facts without checking or giving up when our work seems rejected.
And deliver us from evil – especially unloving words that speak unfairly of us or others and reflect poorly on our LORD God.
For Yours is the Kingdom – where our work and writing belong as we long to live and write in Your Power for Your Glory forever. Amen.”

http://theanchorofthesoul.blogspot.com/

httphinkinginthespirit.blogspot.com/

http://watchinginprayer.blogspot.com/

http://writingprayerfully.blogspot.com/

http://daveswatch.com/

BOOKS ON CHRISTIAN WRITING

Earlier when I asked if there were any books on Christian writing, someone answered that books on writing were books on writing. A book on Christian writing would be like a book on Christian auto mechanics. This was a clever picture. I immediately thought of Robert Pirsig’s book, Zen And The Art of Motorcycle Repair.

There is a sense, of course, in which that is absolutely true. Writing is a craft. We would not expect subject matter to effect it. Most of us have been moved by art depicting Christian themes, but who would write or read a book on Christian painting or sculpting?

However, there is more to what I am thinking than that. There is something about weaving writing into our spiritual disciplines that is on a different plane. There is more to learning to listen for the voice of God, hearing His voice, sensing His direction, than writing a tweet on fixing a fuel pump. I have been reaching for this in this Writing Prayerfully blog. But I believe a book, written by a clearer thinker than I, would help Christian writers connect with the Holy Spirit in ways that will shake the Earth in these crucial days.

http://theanchorofthesoul.blogspot.com/

http://thinkinginthespirit.blogspot.com/

http://watchinginprayer.blogspot.com/

http://writingprayerfully.blogspot.com/

http://daveswatch.com/

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SEARCHING FOR A METAPHOR

I am hoping you may be able to help me. I am planning to write a book on Hope. And I have decided to start a blog on hope to find out how some of my readers are stirred by the concepts. I think I will call it, the blog not the book, The Anchor of the Soul.

So, how can I clearly and cleverly tell people what I want to do? If I use an old metaphor, it will come across as a cliche’. I am aware that writers are often much more horrified by cliches than are readers. But most of you are writers. Especially for you I need something fresh. Spying out the land, feeling out my audience, or testing the waters, will hardly do. So do any of you have ideas? Please let me hear them.

http://theanchorofthesoul.blogspot.com/

httphinkinginthespirit.blogspot.com/

http://watchinginprayer.blogspot.com/

http://writingprayerfully.blogspot.com/

http://daveswatch.com/

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FAVORITE BOOKS ON WRITING

Recently we went on a short trip with my daughter's family. I was shuffling through books my granddaughter had brought to read and discovered, Snoopy's Guide to the Writing Life. I begin to read and laugh out loud with delight. I told my granddaughter, “I need to borrow this book.” I was quickly informed that it was my book. Sure enough I turned back to the flyleaf and discovered that the book was given me with a marvelous dedication from a friend who happens to be a really good writer.


That same friend also gave me Stephen King's book, On Writing. Both of these books have been important in helping me form my philosophy and develop my skill as a writer.


Another book that came to me in a delightful way is Owen Barfield's Poetic Diction. This is a powerful work for the few who, like me, think of ourselves as poets. I found my copy at Powell's Bookstore in Portland Oregon. I'm not absolutely sure, but I have reason to believe mine is a first edition copy. But I am the first to read it. I know that because as I went through it I found four pages that had not been cut with a razor blade before I could read the text.


I suspect many of you have favorite books on writing. And I think it would not only be helpful to me, but to all of us, if I could get some of you to share what your favorite books on writing are. I would be especially pleased if some of you knew books that were written particularly on writing as a Christian or Christian writing. I cannot name one.


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http://writingprayerfully.blogspot.com/


http://daveswatch.com/


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WRITING THROUGH YOUR WEAKNESS

From time to time I have enjoyed rereading some of my favorite books. There are several books that I revisit every few years. I recently took up The Robe that I hadn't read for about 25 years. I was amazed by how much of it I did not remember. I do not mean I did not remember certain parts until I had reread them. Most of it struck me like a book I had never read. This is a fairly new and embarrassing experience for me. This past weekend we went on a short trip with my daughter's family. I was shuffling through books my granddaughter had brought to read and discovered, Snoopy's Guide to the Writing Life. I begin to read and laugh out loud with delight. I told my granddaughter I needed to borrow the book from her. I was quickly informed that it was my book. Sure enough I turned back to the flyleaf and discovered that the book was given me with a marvelous dedication from a friend who happens to be a really good writer.


I have recently had several far more embarrassing incidents of memory loss. This is not my worst handicap. And I have had to ask myself if they will hinder my ability to write. The answer that came to me immediately was, 'They won't, if I do not let them.” Most of us who know God wants us to write have to work through numerous handicaps.


My favorite fiction writer is Bodie Thoene. She and her husband Brock research their their historical novels together. They have over 35 million books in print in more than 35 languages. I once heard them interviewed at the end of one of their audio books. I was amazed to learn that Bodie is dyslexic and has found it too painful to reread her own books. This is something like Beethoven writing the 9th Symphony and other marvelous works after he was completely deaf.


What are your weaknesses? All of us have them. But if you will not let them they probably will not keep you from putting words up on the computer screen and publishing them to bless lives.


Now, I fear I have been a little too simplistic. Handicaps can be terribly difficult to work through. And despite the two examples I gave, some of them are absolutely impossible to overcome as a writer. However, I do believe there are three obedient actional attitudes to apply to your weaknesses.


One of them is conviction. Do you sense a compulsion, possibly even a calling from God? Do not give up because what you face is difficult.


Another is endurance. Stay at it, work at it. Think continually about ways to cope with it or get around it. When I brought up some evidences of my memory loss to my 10 year old granddaughter she immediately begin to tell me about a study done with nuns who remained sharp because they continued to be mentally active. And it was discovered by postmortem pathologies of their brains that they actually had full-blown Alzheimer's. They had staved off the effects by keeping mentally and physically active. You can look this study up it's easy to find on Google. Whatever your handicap, don't give up on it.


Finally, and most important, pray about it. Of course God may take away your thorn In the flesh. But in many cases God will glorify Himself by turning your weakness into strength as you obey Him.

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http://daveswatch.com/

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YOU WRITE WHAT YOU ARE

Jesus said it in Matthew Chapter 7. “You can't grow grapes from thorn bushes.” This applies to every area of our lives from running a marathon to raising your children. And it especially applies to writing which is the fruit of your soul. I remember reading something Baxter Black wrote on how he began writing poetry. He told about writing a poem with a religious theme for an English class in college. He got the paperback with the words writ large and in red across the top of the page, “WRITE ABOUT WHAT YOU KNOW!” Who does not agree with this principle? You must write what you think. You write about what you care about. And yes, you write who you are. Your own character is the foundation of all your writing.


I recently read a quote by Danielle Steel, a secular writer, in a secular book on writing.


“Where do the ideas come from? I don't really know. I've always had a deeply religious feeling about my writing. I feel very unimportant in the scheme of it all. I pray a lot before I start a book and as I work through it. And the less important I feel the better the book goes.”


Let me deal briefly here with four aspects of prayer that are essential to writing.


INTIMACY


We spend time in prayer to develop intimacy with God. The more time you spend in direct fellowship with God the more He shapes your character.


REPENTANCE


Character development is painful. We need to allow God to make changes in our lives. And we have to come to Him with a tender heart repenting of attitudes and actions that do not please Him.


NOURISHMENT


To get the most nourishment we need to pray the word of God. We take prayer to the level of meditation by memorizing a scripture and then thinking about it over time, maybe several days.


Many years ago I pastored church in a rural community in Texas. I am convinced that during the five years I served there a man who died shortly before I came continued to have the most Godly influence of anyone in that community. His wife told me every morning as he began his day he would fix a Bible verse in his mind. Then he would repeat that verse over and over all day long. And God developed his character and multiplyied the fruit of his life.


PRAISE


Praise is sometimes a neglected element of our prayer life. And yet nothing that I know of develops faith, courage, hope, joy, or peace as thoroughly as praising God for who He is and what He does.


MISSION


Do you spend time talking to God about His mission for your life? Sense of mission it is essential to the attractiveness and benefit of your writing. This is of course true in writing Christian non-fiction. But it is also an underlying foundation for all writing, fiction or nonfiction.


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http://daveswatch.com/

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